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Seattle Mariners fans are encouraged to bring new and gently used baseball and softball equipment to Safeco Field on Saturday, July 27, when the Mariners take on the Minnesota Twins (1:10pm start) for donation to the Rainier Vista Boys & Girls Club of Seattle.

The equipment drive is part of the project known as the Baseball Tomorrow Fund, a cooperative effort by Major League Baseball, individual teams and the Major League Baseball Players Association. The donated equipment and a $5,000 cash grant will be made to the Rainier Vista Boys & Girls Club in the name of Mariners pitcher Charlie Furbush, who is the Mariners Baseball Tomorrow Fund Ambassador. Furbush and a BTF representative will present the check to Rainier Vista during a pregame ceremony on Saturday.

Volunteers will be outside the gates of Safeco Field beginning at 11a on July 27 to accept donations of new and gently used gloves, balls, bats, and other baseball and softball equipment. Cash contributions will also be accepted.

This year marks the ninth season the Baseball Tomorrow Fund has teamed with Major League Baseball Clubs on the equipment collection program. Last year, over 12,000 pieces of equipment and nearly $300,000 in monetary contributions were donated to youth baseball and softball organizations in Major League markets in conjunction with the Equipment Day initiative. To date, over 100,000 pieces of equipment and approximately $1,550,000 in total monetary donations have benefited organizations in need.

“As we celebrate the ninth season of the Equipment Day initiative, we are excited to see the program continue to grow and expand in its reach,” says Cathy Bradley, Executive Director of the Baseball Tomorrow Fund. “The Clubs, players, and fans are an integral part of the program’s success in giving more children in our communities access to baseball and softball.”

The Rainier Vista Boys & Girls Club administers the Seattle Reviving Baseball in Inner-Cities program which provides the opportunity for boys and girls to play baseball and softball at no charge.